About the artist
Welshman Thomas Jones (1742–1803) studied under landscape artist Richard Wilson from 1763-65. He later lived in Italy from 1776-83, initially in Rome and then Naples. Jones is now best known for his unique oil studies of nearby buildings in Naples, views captured from his apartment window. Noted for their precision and immediacy, these paintings were the earliest British examples of this type of open-air sketching. Breaking traditional landscape painting norms, Jones's work anticipated the styles of Camille Corot and the Barbizon School. Interestingly, Jones's fame increased in the 20th century only when these works were rediscovered. Jones had never intended for them to be shown publically.
